Bret and I were talking about employment during the Millenium. Since he’s a teacher he thinks he’s got a pretty secure job, maybe not now, but at least for 1,000 years during the Millenium. I guess I’m not too worried either. I’ve owned many many different businesses, so as long as there are businesses during the Millenium I’ll be ok too.

The question came up about who will need to change jobs? Which jobs won’t be needed anymore? What are all you doctors going to do? What about attorneys? Cops? Judges? Nurses? Tax accountants? Funeral homes? Pharmacy? Vets?

It seems that doctors and lawyers are the ones that will be without work during the millenium. I’m an architect and I think we’ll be building lots of temples and ward houses so I’m feeling pretty secure.;-)

I’ve thought of this from time to time as well. I do in-home health care now, but I’m on the road to becoming an attorney. Probably neither job will be needed in the Millennium. Maybe they’ll re-assign us as sanitation workers or some other job that nobody else wants. (Wouldn’t that be a piece of irony?)

I actually wrote about lawyers in the millennium here. My conclusion was that although there will not be conentious litigation between parties, most likely, during the millennium, the Lord may still need people with sound heads for administration to help administer the laws that will govern then. While one need not necessarily have legal training for such tasks, legal training does help develop spiritual gifts of administration.

Also, I sometimes wonder if lawyers will not be uniquely qualified to stand as proxy mediators, if proxies are used, before the judgment bar of God.

At any rate, my main conclusion was that even if my legal skills are not needed or used during the millenium, I would be more than happy to be nothing more than a sweep-boy or sanitation worker in the House of the Lord to earn my keep, if it meant spending lots of time in the temple. I am a quick learner and a hard worker, and would be willing to do anything asked of me to eat the bread of the laborer. I am learning to garden.

I suspect most of us will be on cleanup duty for the first 500 years or so, as humanity has done a pretty thorough job of trashing the planet. I’m also hoping there will be remedial classes for people like me who don’t know how to garden or take care of animals.

I hate to break it to you, but in the millennium, Mormons will finally quit building hideous buildings where choirs sound awful and start meeting in the architectural masterpieces that Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans have been building for centuries.

For you with gardening comments, if the earth is in it’s paradisical state (like the garden of eden) then all we have to do is dress it and keep it….does that really mean gardening, or just harvesting. No weeds, no diseased plants, great production, how much work? By the sweat of the brow was after paradise, before it was no sweat!

No need for worldly gain in the Millenium. Things will be the reverse of what they are now. Instead of spending 90% of our time in worldly pursuits, we’ll be spending 10% (if that). It will be as it was intended by God through the ages…people living unselfishly, getting only what they need and knowing when to say they have enough. The rest of the time will be spent teaching, praying, serving, doing genealogy and Temple work, learning, and worshiping.

What about those that don’t want to do the Lord’s work? What’ll they be doing? I’m curious to see the latitude given those that aren’t members – do you think they’ll just do whatever? Maybe humanitarian work or work on hobbies?

Kristine – I won’t disagree with your assertion that LDS ward houses are anything but “architecture.” But please don’t try to tell me that the average Catholic, Lutheren or Anglican church goer attends a weekly meeting in a building designed by Michaelangelo, Brunelleschi or Christopher Wren. There are bad church buildings in every religion – most of them built in the last century. And while the great cathedrals of Europe are wonderful places to experience choir music they’re not so functional when it comes to teaching 7 year-olds.

So I think we’ll need many new buildings that are both beautiful and functional – inspiring and practical. And architects will lead the way!! ;-)

“The Millennium will be a time of righteousness and peace on the earth. The Lord has revealed that ‘in that day the enmity of man, and the enmity of beasts, yea, the enmity of all flesh, shall cease’ (D&C 101:26; see also Isaiah 11:6–9). Satan will be ‘bound, that he shall have no place in the hearts of the children of men’ (D&C 45:55; see also Revelation 20:1–3).

“During the Millennium, all people on the earth will be good and just, but many will not have received the fulness of the gospel. Consequently, members of the Church will participate in missionary work.”

I’m seriously not trying to be a wise guy but when you say “…I can’t imagine any type of group setting where lawyers, acting as explainers of the law, advocates, mediators or judges are completely unnecessary” isn’t that counter to what we are to expect based on the paragraphs above? Will we really need “mediators or judges?” I’m honestly interested in your explanation.

You know, I don’t think that doctors will be totally out of work. Just because there is no disease or sickness doesn’t mean that people won’t break their leg, cut their arm, smash their fingers, or bruise their head. And what about all of those babies that are supposed to be born? Yes, we will be resurrected in the twinkling of an eye, but we have to DIE first. That means that we are still mortal, and mortals need doctors.

You know, I don’t think that doctors will be totally out of work. Just because there is no disease or sickness doesn’t mean that people won’t break their leg, cut their arm, smash their fingers, or bruise their head. And what about all of those babies that are supposed to be born? Yes, we will be resurrected in the twinkling of an eye, but we have to DIE first. That means that we are still mortal, and mortals need doctors.

I think the most important thing will be heart and hands willing to serve in whatever capacity needed. I certainly have those. If asked by the right people, I would stop practicing law in an instant and spend the rest of my life sweeping floors in the temple, or whatever else was asked.

Lamonte: Well, all my clients right now are good and just, and yet here they are paying me to do their legal work. Just because people are good and just doesn’t mean we won’t have law. Law governs relationships, and even good and just people can have differences of opinion about their relationships.

I assume you believe that even good and just people might decide they are not right for each other and get divorced, or create and dissolve partnerships, or purchase interests in each others’ businesses. Don’t they need laws and written documents to govern these things?

Also, are you saying that there will be no disputes whatsoever? Do you think people will be perfect or all-knowing? Cause if they aren’t, they are still going to have disagreements, and those disagreements will rquire advocates, mediators and/or judges.

MCQ – Certainly living in the world today, it is hard to imagine anyone – even the best of us – not having disputes that need moderating or judgement. I guess I’m just looking at the description of the millenium that I copied above. And it seems that ultimately, if we expect to live with God in the Celestial Kingdom, our hearts would be in a state of complete harmony with others, otherwise we would be living in a different place. I realize the millenium is not the celestial kingdom but it seems like it is the prelude to such.

I’m not a lawyer basher and I understand that many of your clients might be wonderful people but they need your services because others among us are not so wonderful. I once heard that in some societies (Japan is what I am thinking of) there is less of a need for lawyers because there is sort of an honor code between people or between citizens and companies where disputes are worked out in fairness before the courts are required. I’m sure you would know more about that than I.

I guess my perception is that we would live in that manner during the millenium and our first goal would be to resolve differences in fairness and we would all recognize what fairness means. Idealistic? Certainly. But isn’t that what religion is all about?

Lamonte-Disagreements do not need to be heated. In fact, they can be very friendly. A lot of lawyers actually deal more with procedural issues than actual arguments. There are adoptions, wills, estates, business agreements, licenses, patents, and so on. Japan might not have as many lawyers because of their honor, but they still have them.

Lamonte, don’t hold up Japan as a model. It’s got plenty of problems, I assure you. People are oppressed, robbed and cheated in that society, and if you are “lower on the totem pole” you just have to grin and bear it, with almost zero recourse.

Besides, roles taken up by lawyers in the US are filled in Japan by hordes of government bureaucrats. You trade one disadvantage for another.

Seth, Misty and MCQ – OK. You’ve convinced me of one thing. I’m not going to win this argument. ;-) And if I’m practicing my “millenial” posture then I won’t want to argue. I hope you don’t think that my arguments against the “need” for lawyers meant that I don’t expect to find some lawyers in heaven. I hope to see you all there!

I think there won’t be jailers and I don’t know that there will be people selling security systems or computer antiviru software, or spies and I suspect that if there are police their numbers will be much reduced.

I suspect there will be a lot of companies or organizations turning military surplus into agricultural implements.